Monday, January 12, 2015

Homemade Granola!!

Did you know that January is National Oatmeal Month?!? We didn't know that it existed until a couple of days ago, so we thought we would share it with you! Since oatmeal isn't the most thrilling thing to make, we thought we would share something a little more exciting and delicious: Granola!!
 Granola is so delicious, crunchy, and versatile. It can be used in yogurt, as breakfast cereal, by the handfuls, etc.... There are so many ways to eat granola. Homemade granola is so much better than the store bought kind. Once you try it, you will never go back especially if you make this recipe! Store-bought granola is full of oil and refined sugars that just aren't necessary.

 The amazing thing about granola is that  it is so easy to change to your liking. Don't like raisins? Add dried cranberries! Allergic to nuts? Skip them! There is an endless array of different things you can do with granola!
 We love the big, yummy clumps of granola that are so crunchy and tasty! If you are like us, you might want to consider adding an egg white to your granola. It sounds weird, we know, but it helps make those delicious chunks! Stirring your granola as little as possible will help keep those chunks as well.
Enough talking! Lets make some granola!

Ingredients:
  • 4 cups old-fashioned oats*
  • 1/2 cup slivered almonds (or whatever nut sounds good to you, we often use sunflower seeds)
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut (or sweetened, if you like sweeter things)
  • 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds (if you don't have this you can just omit, it won't do any harm)
  •  1 cup honey**
  • 1 1/2 T vanilla
  • 1/2 cup Raisins (or whatever dried fruit you want)
Directions:
  1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Combine oats, almonds, ground flaxseeds and coconut in a large mixing bowl.
  3. In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together honey and vanilla.
  4. Pour the honey mixture over the oat mixture and stir until all oats are covered in honey.
  5. Spread onto a cookie sheet  and bake for 40 minutes. Stir the granola once after 20 minutes.
  6. Place the pan on a cooling rack until completely cooled. 
  7. Add the raisins to the granola and mix. We usually keep our granola in a food storage bag.
*You can change the amount of oats, nuts, and dried fruit, as long as it equals 5 cups.
**Half of the honey can be replaced with applesauce if you want granola that is a little lower in sugar. We have never tried it, but we think that pumpkin would be a good replacement too! If you try it, let us know how it works and if it is delicious! Also, you can replace the honey with pure maple syrup which is also very good.

What is your favorite granola combo?
Since it is national oatmeal month, what is your favorite way to eat oatmeal? 
Ashley's favorite way is brown sugar and maple syrup. My (Georgia) favorite way is with peanut butter and dried fig slices! (It might sound weird but it is delicious!)
Let us know in the comments below or on instgram or twitter (@twinbakers96)



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